Archived News:
The Sledgehammer Games Website is live as a home to the recently announced development studio formed by former principals of Visceral Games. The Flash site currently offers limited information, but there is a careers section that hints the studio's first project may be a shooter, as there are listings that call for traits like "Serious passion for Shooters, Console or PC" and "5 years experience working on current AAA multiplayer shooters for current consoles and PC." Another listing calls for "Knowledge of Maya, Quake and Unreal."
PS3Trophies.org lists several PlayStation 3 trophies that seem to reveal plans for further DLC for Borderlands, Gearbox Software's role-playing shooter. Thanks Destructoid, where they hint that the DLC is destined for the PC, as well.
New content in the latest Team Fortress 2 patch adds new announcer references to friends, mercenaries, and betrayal in the teamplay shooter. This is noted on Shacknews, who have comment on this from Valve promising meaning to follow. "So far, we haven't seen anyone on the various forums out there who's figured it out," says Valve's Robin Walker." There's something about the way they're used in-game that's meaningful." Walker also tells them that "user reports of hearing [the new sound bites] in-game are also legit." A further hint as to this meaning is on Kotaku: "We've got something coming, but it's not a new game mode," Robin Walker tells them. "The key to understanding the new sound files is to figure out who's hearing them in-game, and who isn't."
The Dark Void Community Website offers a link to Dark Void - Jetpack Attack, a Flash game tie-in with the upcoming jetpack-powered action game. According to Capcom: "This mini-game of awesomeness is a little taste test, a small sliver, of what Dark Void will offer come January 19, 2010." They add that this game supports custom content: "Once you get the hang of this game, you can take control and create your own. The flash game comes with a complete tool set to create your own version of JETPACK ATTACK to share with your friends. Make it mind-numbingly hard or simply amusing ... it's all up to you! Create and play for countless, unique levels."
Steam News announces a new automatic update is now available to update King Arthur - The Role-playing Wargame to version 1.03. A list of the major changes in this update follow. Continue here to read the full story.
"I Think Of Pirates As A Marketplace" is the grabber headline of an interview with John Riccitiello on Kotaku, where the EA CEO discusses the growing trend of using DLC as a fulcrum to prevent piracy and curtail used-game sales. He says "They can steal the disc, but they can't steal the DLC," though a later update acknowledges that piracy of DLC is not actually unheard of. "I don't think anybody should pirate anything," Riccitiello clarifies. "I believe in the artistry of the people who build [the games industry.] I profoundly believe that. And when you steal from us, you steal from them. Having said that, there's a lot of people who do."
Link of the Day: Model Makers—Young C. Park. Thanks Max-Ray.
Actor Lance Henriksen will be represented in Aliens vs Predator, Rebellion's upcoming sci-fi shooter revival, reports Destructoid. He will play a descendant of Charles Bishop Weyland, one of his roles in the series besides the Bishop androids, and he thinks this might even help him get lucky. "They’ve made me look very good," says the actor, "This is the first time I’ve been fully represented in a game, with my voice and how I look, and the Rebellion guys have done a great job. I might score from this game!"
FALLEN EARTH, LLC announces a 20% discount for US military personnel on Fallen Earth, their eponymous post-apocalyptic MMORPG, saying the discount is good for members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. This applies to purchase of the game, but not the game's monthly subscription fee. As a bonus, military personnel who buy the game will receive a Fallen Earth t-shirt with their purchase. Full details follow. Continue here to read the full story.
Today is the day the Windows edition of Colin McRae DiRT 2 is scheduled to screech into US stores, offering the DirectX 11-fuelled edition of the rally racing sequel. True to that the game is available via digital distribution on Direct2Drive and Steam. Word is: "DiRT 2 is a revolution in off-road racing. Big event atmosphere and a killer vehicle roster come together on a multi-discipline World Tour, stretching from Malaysia to Morocco and London to LA. Compete in 100 events against icons like Ken Block and Travis Pastrana, go online in head-to-head 8 player races and enjoy jaw-dropping visuals, damage and speed."
Wired.com has put out the Call for Submissions for their 12th annual Vaporware awards, the yearly celebration (in that derisive sort of way) of broken tech promises (thanks Mike Martinez). They explain that annual cover-boy Duke Nukem Forever is no longer eligible, saying: "The company developing the DNF first-person shooter, 3-D Realms, officially closed up shop in May, and Take-Two Interactive, the company that owns the rights to Duke, hasn’t commented on the game’s future. He’ll be missed." This is actually not accurate, as while most of the DNF development team was laid off in May of this year, 3D Realms has maintained they are not closed, and that development of DNF "continues," so the game seems like a fine candidate for a write-in campaign.
Pandemic Studios announces the North American release of The Saboteur, saying the World War II stealth/action game is now available for Windows, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 (the game should also be available in Europe since Friday). The console versions include a code for The Midnight Show, a DLC pack with a new mini-game and other new content, including the option to unlock the game's nudity. Since there is no need to combat sales of used PC games, this additional content is included with the Windows edition out of the box. Here's word on the game: The Saboteur is set in World War II France and takes players through the seedy underbelly of Paris as hero Sean Devlin sets off on a revenge mission. Inspired by a true story, The Saboteur stars Sean Devlin who, motivated by personal revenge, fights, climbs, and races through open-world Paris, sneaking into the heart of the Nazi operations and sabotaging their every move. With the help of the French Resistance, the British intelligence, an arsenal of weaponry, street smarts and brawn, players will exact revenge on those who get in his way. From derailing trains and blowing up zeppelins to scaling famous Parisian landmarks, this action hero uses a broad range of weapons, explosives and vehicles to get the job done.
As Sean takes down enemies, the citizens of Paris are empowered to resist the tyrannical Third Reich and their eyes open to the colorful world around them. This innovative mechanic, called the ‘Will to Fight,’ will change the way Paris is seen and felt – from a dark and oppressed policed state to a bright and inspired world where the citizens fight back. As the player executes acts of sabotage against the occupying force, color returns to the stylized black and white world – both figuratively and literally.
Tripwire Interactive announces their co-op survival//horror-themed first-person shooter Killing Floor is now available in stores in Australia. This is apparently without cuts, as they say: "the game is rated MA 15+, for the same version available on Steam or in stores across Europe and North America."
3000 AD announces Escape From LV-115, a free expansion planned for release in Q1 2010 for All Aspect Warfare, their sci-fi combat game. Escape From LV-115 follows on the conclusion of the original game by following the game's band of combatants on their mission to return home. Word is: "The DLC also features multiplayer deathmatch space and planetary combat which takes place in the LV-115 region." There are more details in the announcement and there are screenshots from the expansion on this page.
Paradox Interactive announces the release of Battle of Trafalgar, the promised expansion for East India Company, the naval combat RTS game (the original game is required to run the add-on). The expansion is being digitally distributed, it is now available on GamersGate, and may be heading to other outlets along the way. Word is: "Set in late 1805, during the height of the Napoleonic wars, East India Company: Battle of Trafalgar recreates the legendary naval battle fought between the British Royal navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish navies. Players have the opportunity to take control of historically accurate ships from all three navies and serve as key commanders in a simulation of the most decisive British naval victory of the war."
Devolver Digital tweets about plans to bring dedicated servers and deathmatch and more to Serious Sam HD in the coming weeks through updates to the remake of Croteam's shooter: Rad updates coming to Serious Sam HD in the next few weeks. Recording, demo, dedicated servers and...wait for it...deathmatch. Stay tuned...
A playable demo for Greed: Black Border is now available, offering the chance to hack-and-slash your way through a sample of this science-fiction-themed action/RPG. The 450 MB demo is available for download from AtomicGamer, eXp Download, FileFront, and Worthplaying.
The Cities XL Website announces the release of a new content pack that adds a bus system to Cities XL, Monte Cristo's urban-planning and management game. The pack is available for Cities XL Planet members, and this previously published article outlines further details on what the pack includes and how this mass transport system impacts the game.
Slitherine announces the release of Grand Strategy, a free expansion for Commander Europe at War created by fans of the World War II strategy game. The expansion is available on this page, and word is: "Grand Strategy requires v 1.12 of Commander Europe at War, but it supports the original game and the MILITARY HISTORY version. The Grand Strategy expansion sits alongside your existing install so after installing you either have the choice to run the original game or the Grand Strategy expansion. You can uninstall the Grand Strategy mod at any time and will still have a fully working version of the original game." The feature list follows. Continue here to read the full story.
A new version 3.3 is live for World of Warcraft, Blizzard's MMORPG, offering a number of changes and fixes, as well as the launch of the Icecrown Citadel, which includes three five-player dungeons. All the changes are outlined in the WoW Test Realm Patch Notes, and manual versions of some of the patches for the various localized versions of the game can be found on ActionTrip, AtomicGamer, FileFront, The Patches Scrolls, and WorthPlaying.
Steam News announces the release of a new automatic update for Team Fortress 2, Valve's multiplayer shooter. The update has a bunch of fixes and closes of a possible avenue for exploitation. The full patch notes follow. Continue here to read the full story.
Planet Calypso, the MMOG formerly known as Project Entropia, announces a auction of a virtual space station in their online world will take place next week. In 2004 they announced Jon "NEVERDIE" Jacobs won their auction of a virtual space resort for $100,000, which they claim has turned out to be a wildly profitable investment. Here's word from the announcement: "The auction will begin on December14th and last until December 28th with an initial opening bid of 1 PED ($.10 USD). To take part in the auction, download the game at the official website, www.planetcalypso.com and create a free account. Once an avatar has been created players can easily enter the world and deposit funds into their account via the game's website or in-game interface. Players can gain access to the auction via the Auctioneer character located in all major towns on Planet Calypso. The winner will own this unique hunting destination with a number of high-level creatures not available anywhere else on Planet Calypso."
The BioShock 2 Website is online for 2K Games' upcoming submerged shooter sequel (thankfully Flash seems to be waterproof). The site includes info on the game and three new gameplay movies.
A new patch for World of Basketball updates this sports simulation to version 1.9.6, a free update to the 2010 season for all users. The patch is available on FileFront, Gamer's Hell, The Patches Scrolls, and Worthplaying.
Patch #5 for Out of the Park Baseball 10 is now available, updating Out of the Park Developments' sports game to version 10.4.36. There are patches for Window, Linux, and Mac, all on deck at AtomicGamer, The Patches Scrolls, and Worthplaying.
Version 1.03 of Solium Infernum is now available through a new patch for Cryptic Comet's turn-based strategy game. The new version has a UI improvement along with some bug-fixes, and the patch is available AtomicGamer and The Patches Scrolls.
Hey, tonight Better off Ted returns to the airwaves. We're looking forward to its return, though I also have great fears that the show's quirkiness is being toned down, which would ruin its appeal. We shall see.
Also, today is a sad anniversary, as it was on this day in 1980 that John Lennon was gunned down in New York City. "Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout Revolution, Evolution, Masturbation, Flagellation, Regulation, Integrations, mediations, United Nations, congratulations. All we are saying is give peace a chance."
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